Blogs: Bane or Blessing?

Welcome once again to my occasional rant. There has been a topic that I have been thinking about for quite some time now. And that has to be blogs. If you haven't heard of blogs... Where have you been? And how in the world is that possible since you are reading my own blog at this very moment. There is a plethora of free and useful information out there and if you have yet to tap it I would highly suggest you do so.

Blogs aren't just a persons personal log or journal as it were, but instead they can be used for much more beneficial needs such as sharing information and/or experience. They are useful also for the collection of links for a specific interest. Then of course the blogger has the oppurtunity to comment on that link or topic thus fulfilling his or her need for an outlet. The comments on the link or topic can be immensley helpful on whether or not you the reader want to take the time to click and read said link.

There are two types of blogs that I personally am drawn and interested in. There is the blog where the links are posted about a specific subject, two of which I visit are Whedonesque relating to all things that are related to the works of Joss Whedon and Engadget that post the latest in gadgets that are coming out and related notes.

The second is the type of blog where some individual shares their advice and their experience. There are few of these that I visit frequently but one that I have been taken a shine to would be I Will Teach You To Be Rich, which comes from an experienced money man that has some really interesting insights into managing ones personal finances. And when I was interested in the goings on at Microsoft there is a very interesting blog put forth by an anonymous blogger named Mini-MSFT Another blog that I find interesting but is really more of a hybrid of the two types would be Blogging Ohio which discusses things that relate to my home state.

Okay, well I suppose that is enough on the benefits of blogs. If you have any blogs that you might think I would be interested in just put it into the comments or if you want to know more of the blogs I visit or would like to find blogs that interest you, just post in the comments and I'd be more than happy to help.

Tips on Giving a Good Presentation

Recently I've been seeing a good bit of presentations and I personally think I give a good presentation so why not give a few good tips on how I like to give a good presentation.

First off power point is just a tool it is not your presentation. Make your presentation more natural by using PowerPoint like an new style notecard. When you throw up the ppt make sure that all you are going to talk about is not on the slide. Use the bullet points and headlines in your ppt as a reminder and not as a dictation.

If something is an aside and not vital to the whole of the presentation make sure that you leave it off of the slides. But just because something is not vital to the presentation doesn't mean it isn't important. By that I mean if you have a story (which I'll get to next) that adds character to the presentation then make sure you tell it but try to make it seem natural and not planned.

Now stories are a great way of getting your audience to pay attention and to give them something to take away from your presentation. But of course you have to make sure that it does relate to what you are talking about.

Last but not least: Make sure people can hear and understand you! I have seen so many presentations of late that the speaker is either speaking way too low or way too fast! I know that people can have stage fright that may cause this but some people just don't realize they are doing it. If you see someone doing this, do them a favor and bring it up either during or after the presenation.

Now go out there to educate people but make sure to leave them with a smile or a laugh!

Oh and if you do not have power point check out http://OpenOffice.org